Refugees Seat

07/28/2026

On July 28, 2026, we mark 75 years since the adoption of the Refugee Convention, a commitment that remains as relevant today as it was in 1951.

As refugee protection faces growing challenges worldwide, this milestone is an opportunity to reaffirm collective responsibility, advocate for stronger protection systems, and call for renewed action to ensure that refugee rights are respected.

Swipe to learn more.

07/23/2026

Applications are now open for the University of Oxford Refugee Studies Centre's Online School in Forced Migration.

This intensive online programme brings together researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and advocates from around the world for a week of interdisciplinary learning on forced migration.

Participants will engage with leading experts through lectures, live seminars, discussions, and global networking opportunities.

📅 Programme dates:
7–11 December 2026
21–25 June 2027

🔗Learn more and apply here: https://www.rsc.ox.ac.uk/study/international-summer-school/overview

07/10/2026

📢 The Refugee Advisory Board Germany (RAB Germany) has published its third policy brief, “Conditions Shaping Syrians’ Futures and Prospects for Return”, written by Majdi Laktinah.

This policy brief argues that sustainable return requires looking beyond the end of conflict toward rebuilding the conditions that make return safe, dignified, and lasting. It offers practical recommendations to ensure safe and informed return, restore housing, land and property rights alongside access to basic services, promote livelihood opportunities and economic reintegration, strengthen transitional justice, inclusive governance, and peacebuilding, and engage the Syrian diaspora as partners in recovery and return planning.

🔗 Read the full paper here:https://rab-germany.de/core/storage/uploads/2026/07/08/rab-pb3_web_neu_uid_6a4e211ac1288.pdf

07/08/2026

The Power of Trust and Collective Action: RLOs Host World Refugee Day Reception 2026 in Addis Ababa

With this year's World Day theme, "Until Everyone Is Safe," three of Ethiopia's Refugee-Led Organizations (RLOs): the Shama Institute for Cultural Exchange, the Ethio Friends Foundation for Refugees, and Tomorrow Is Better (TiB), collaborated with R-SEAT to host a World Refugee Day Reception in Addis Ababa.

A powerful evening that brought together over 50 guests from refugee-led organizations, UNHCR representatives, government institutions, diplomatic missions, and community members. They gathered to reflect on the day's theme and celebrate the ongoing work of RLOs across the country, including reflections on Ethiopia's recently launched Roadmap, an integration and inclusion plan similar to Kenya's Shirika Plan.

The reception was honored by the presence of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, H.E. Dr. Barham Salih, who emphasized the importance of recognizing refugees not through the lens of displacement, but through their potential and contributions to society. He stressed the need to move beyond temporary assistance models toward long-term solutions that support self-reliance, economic participation, and social inclusion.

Follow us and the RLOs tagged above to keep up with their incredible work for refugees in Ethiopia.

06/30/2026

On 24 June 2026, R-SEAT convened a High-Level Roundtable on Syria’s Recovery in partnership with وزارة الطوارئ وإدارة الكوارث السوريةthe Syrian Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management, the Syrian National Mine Action Centre, and the Permanent Mission of Canada in Geneva.

Building on R-SEAT’s role in creating spaces for refugee leadership, state engagement, and international cooperation, the roundtable brought together senior representatives to advance dialogue on inclusive recovery, humanitarian action, and long-term reconstruction in Syria.

Participants explored the Government of Syria’s No Tent / No Camp Vision, the challenges and opportunities surrounding safe and dignified returns, and the critical role of mine action as a foundation for rebuilding communities, restoring livelihoods, and protecting civilians.

The roundtable also created an opportunity to hear directly from Syrian officials, refugee and community representatives, diplomatic missions, UN agencies, and institutional partners on practical priorities, coordination challenges, and the support most urgently needed to move Syria’s recovery agenda forward.

We extend our sincere thanks to our partners, speakers, and all those who joined this important conversation.

06/26/2026

06/24/2026

📝 New article: The 1951 Convention is Not a Relic, It Is a Warning

Written by R-SEAT Managing Director Mustafa Alio, the piece reflects on the 75th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention and why its protections remain essential today. Drawing on his own experience of forced displacement, Mustafa reflects on the importance of refugee protection, the risks of weakening asylum systems, and why refugee rights must continue to be defended in an increasingly challenging global context.

Read more here: https://opiniojuris.org/2026/06/16/symposium-on-the-1951-refugee-convention-at-75-the-1951-convention-is-not-a-relic-it-is-a-warning/

06/21/2026

📢 This World Refugee Day, many of the countries questioning refugee protection today are facing a reality shaped by long-term demographic and economic pressures: aging populations, shrinking workforces, labour shortages, and increasing strain on healthcare and pension systems.

They need refugees to help address these pressures through work across essential sectors, filling critical labour gaps, starting businesses, and strengthening local economies and public services.

Refugee protection is often seen as a cost. But exclusion also comes at a cost: lost skills, reduced labour supply, and missed economic and social contributions.

06/20/2026

📢 This World Refugee Day, there is a reality that cannot be ignored: refugee protection is not only shaped by law. It is shaped by narrative.

Too often, that narrative is shaped by fear, misinformation, and political opportunism rather than facts or lived experience. When fear becomes politically profitable, protection weakens.

Communications and narrative change can no longer be treated as secondary. They are central to the protection of refugee systems themselves. No legal framework survives indefinitely without public support. And no system can last if fear is stronger than facts in public debate.

06/19/2026

📢 This World Refugee Day, we mark 75 years since the adoption of the Refugee Convention. A commitment that remains as relevant today as it was in 1951.

The Refugee Convention was created after World War II to ensure that people forced to flee persecution have access to protection, safety, and rights. It remains the foundation of international refugee protection today.

But 75 years later, this commitment cannot be taken for granted. It must be understood, defended, and renewed in response to today’s challenges.